Immoral
by symphonic-mess
Summary: A nightmare leads Tsuna into a not-so-chance encounter with Mukuro. Can he ultimately save a man who will never legally be released? 6927
1. Chapter 1: Ambition

- Immoral -

by the Symphonic Mess "Vi"

Disclaimer: My first foray into the Reborn! fandom, and I decide to pick such a dynamic relationship. Oh my. Anyway, I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, it's characters or anything like that. I don't profit off of it. Reviews are all appreciated, so please take a moment afterwards if you have it. I'd much appreciate it, especially since I'm really actually quite nervous about how this story will turn out quality wise on my part. Well, that will be all. Onwards!

Chapter One: Ambition

When Tsuna went to bed, he had been happy to. But when he woke up at three in the morning, he really wished he hadn't.

_So dark..._ He shivered beneath the covers, trying to pull them tighter around him, even though he was already trapped in them from all the tossing and turning he must have done in the middle of the night. If he thought the dream about marrying Haru had been frightening before, he was ready to take back anything bad he said about that horrible dream. Because Tsuna would have gladly been subjected to that again to avoid 'that' place.

_So cold..._ It wasn't just temperature or the weather: it was like having a piece of ice shoved right through your very soul. Physically it was nothing. Mentally it was terrifying. He had seen that place before, and just like that, it had seeped into his nightmares.

_He could hear something that sounded like sloshing water and seeping mist, before anything else, when the dream began. Tsuna tried to follow the sound just by listening for the source, but it seemed to be coming literally from everywhere. A tight pressure was caving in upon his body, making it difficult to move even the slightest bit. If he strained his eyes a good deal, he could see small changes in the dark color to the north, indicating movement._

_That seemed like the right place to go at the moment. No way was he going to just stay here. It was pitch black almost, and the only sounds were those of the water, and they were starting to drive him insane. It almost sounded like there was an infuriating rhythm to the sounds, like even they were meant to be a never ending torture device as well. Tsuna thought at that moment that this was his punishment. For what, he did not know or maybe he just couldn't remember._

_Still, Tsuna had hope. He believed definitely that if he moved in that direction he would find something. But it wasn't exactly a good feeling. In fact, it was somewhat the opposite. He had this distinct feeling that it was the way he had to go, even though what he found there wouldn't be a good thing at all. Tsuna convinced himself that it was that darkness that was the reason he had to go this way. There was something important, he just couldn't remember what._

_'Go back!' A high-pitched, tiny voice in the back of his head said, as he began the struggle to move. Forcing his legs through the darkness that he could only assume was making the water-like sounds, proved to be much harder than he anticipated. All of the muscles in his leg were burning; burning like they might rip any second. But the pain only made his urgency to move forward rise._

_Again, in the back of his head, that voice said, 'Go back!', more urgently this time. There was something, probably common sense, that told him he shouldn't be doing this. Then there was a stronger voice, that of his own will telling him that if he didn't do this; if he didn't find that something that was out there, he would definitely regret it. Tsuna instinctively followed that voice inside him, because his will had always guided him. Not to mention that he was sick and tired of always having regrets._

_The surface he was fighting against was lumpy and uneven, something Tsuna wasn't prepared for when he felt the first small hill. 'What was that?!' He inwardly cursed. But they could also give him good push if he used them right, he realized. It wasn't actually getting lighter, and he had the strange opposite feeling of going deeper. So what had been that strange discoloration he saw? Following his instincts again, he reacted out and felt something that wasn't the same dark, condensed water._

_A dull thud echoed across the waters, stirring a small series of ripples. There was movement! Panicking, Tsuna realized that he wasn't alone here, in this hellish nightmare. Disturbing as it was, he had a good idea of what or who it was. The memory of talk of a place where not even the sun shone – a world all it's own. His eyes widened._

_There was now a light. One light, shining red and looking right at him._

That was when he woke up, too terrified to shut his eyes again. He wasn't sure which part scared him more: the nightmarish, hellish place or knowing that he had been seen. Tsuna had only seen it once before, in a small flash, but to have then dreamed it up in such detail... it was too much for him. It was still too early, but there was no way he was going to close his eyes and try to go to sleep again right after that. "Maybe if I go for a small walk I can clear my mind and still get some more sleep."

Deciding that that was a perfect idea, he quickly and quietly dressed himself, being very careful not to make any sounds that would wake the others, he slipped out into the cool, dark morning and began wandering aimlessly. As long as it was familiar, it didn't matter too much where he roamed to. Recently Tsuna had become knowledgeable about Namimori's landscape inside and out thanks to his training.

Anything to stop thinking about that nightmare. He remembered what he had been told. 'Do not feel sympathy for that man', and 'Remember what he has done'. But none of them had seen that place. None of them had seen his memories. Lost in his thoughts, he bumped into something slightly taller than him, and warm. "A-ah, sorry..." he said, not really paying attention.

"Kufufu. You should be careful, Vongola the Tenth, you never know what kind of things come out in the dark."

Tsuna jumped back, startled by Mukuro's sudden appearance. Not just that he was here, but that he was himself at all. Just yesterday morning, when he had talked to Chrome, she said he was sleeping. It was supposed to be a long time before he returned.

Long indeed... "H-Hiiiiiii" he screamed. "Don't scare me like that!" Tsuna knew he shouldn't, but he had to. "Are... are you okay? When the match was over you collapsed. We didn't think we'd here from you again for a long time. I don't really think it's been a long time, I just... don't want you to push it. There are a lot of people counting on you." He wanted to say that he had a lot of friends that would be upset, but he knew that Mukuro would only lie about it if he did.

Mukuro smirked. "Oh? And what do you know about that? I've never done much of anything for anyone without an ulterior motive. But you know that, don't you? You should know that better than anyone, Boss." he laughed.

"And did you know that you're a bad liar?" Tsuna said, staring him down in all seriousness.

"Oh? Am I now? To say that my consciousness was mysterious awakened probably wouldn't be a good enough answer for you." Mukuro raised an eyebrow at that. Leave it to the small brunette to be thoroughly amusing, he told himself, smirking. "If you would try to defend me then you truly are foolish. My sins are too great."

Tsuna shook his head. "Yeah, your kind of ambition is a sin. But you have a soft spot too, for those who have suffered like you. You protected Ken and Chikusa, and paid an unfair price for it." Bi-colored eyes widened in horror. "That place... after everything Ken told me during our fight... it's not right! Even after you consider all your sins, they never considered what happened to you -- the pain you suffered. That's why I refuse to overlook it. I don't care if it's opposite of the law, that's what I believe is right!"

Staring at the ground, Mukuro laughed bitterly. "I don't know how you managed to find all of this out but in this world: if it goes against law, even in the Mafia, it doesn't matter."

But it did. Lifting Mukuro's chin, he stared at him with eyes burning bright. "Does it matter, Mukuro? Does it really? Why don't you tell me?" Mukuro contemplated the beautiful way his dying will flame sometimes shone, even in his eyes. How did someone so soft and weak manage to do things like that and turn things around so thoroughly? That was part of the thrill of deciding to chase after him to possess him.

Mukuro couldn't look away. He couldn't breathe. For a second, the roles were reversed, and a throbbing pain invaded his skull as he was shown Tsuna's memories instead of the other way around. There was his defeat, as he listened to Tsuna ask if he'd be okay, and listen to his alarm at learning of the trio's fate. And during the match, Tsuna showed him what he saw of Mukuro's memories, and his reactions to them. Then there was a conversation with Chrome, after the match, where he asked again, if Mukuro would be okay, sounding so worried. And at the end, there was a memory of a nightmare: a nightmare Tsuna had of that place...

When it was all over, it was all he could do to rest his still buzzing head against the boy's shoulder. "W-" Tsuna cut him off, placing his pointer finger against his lips to hush him. Letting him ask a question like that wouldn't make any difference, because Tsuna couldn't understand it either. He wasn't any more aware of what made it happen, only that he had the strong feeling that he could make it happen here and now if he needed to. What made it happen? He had no idea.

"Does it matter?" He asked once more, back to the original issue, not even concerned about process of sharing memories. If it was about the difference between what Mukuro believed and making him see that Tsuna's beliefs were solid, he was certain he'd get a better answer this time.

Mukuro laughed weakly against his shoulder. "I wonder... what do you think you can do, young Vongola the Tenth? There's no way you can change my fate." Tsuna wrapped his arms around Mukuro. He was right, to an extent. Right now he was merely a middle school boy with a future job as a Mafia Boss. Now he didn't even have the power of the Tenth Vongola yet... but he would, one day.

"Just you wait and watch."

"Kufufufu... you better watch out. One day that softness is going to get you killed, probably while you're still young. If it doesn't, then these new ambitions of yours might get you in trouble."

A/N: This might turn out a bit AU-ish, but as of right now, as you can see, it's not. It's just... one of those early morning things they didn't tell you about. XD Umm, I'm really looking forward to some feedback on this. The rating is definitely going to go up, it's just not there yet. I'm thinking that there will be a lemon probably by chapter three or four, but that could change, depending on where this goes. If you have an constructive criticism, praise, etc., I'd be very, very happy to hear it. Like I said, I'm really nervous about writing this one. But I couldn't resist since I love this pairing, and I got a bit of prodding via inspiration from CelticAngelWings. She's an amazing writer, so if you really like this pairing, she has some really good stories! Anyway, that's enough rambling. I hope you liked it.


	2. Chapter 2: Human Nature

- Immoral -

by the Symphonic Mess "Vi"

Disclaimer: My first foray into the Reborn! fandom, and I decide to pick such a dynamic relationship. Oh my. Anyway, I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, it's characters or anything like that. I don't profit off of it. Reviews are all appreciated, so please take a moment afterwards if you have it. I'd much appreciate it, especially since I'm really actually quite nervous about how this story will turn out quality wise on my part.

Umm, the song mentioned here is totally mine. I wrote it a while back and thought that it would be the perfect theme song for this story, so the lyrics will make a few appearances here and there in the text and in speech, etc. Just so you know I'm not stealing it, and so you know not to use it without my permission, I wanted to make sure to say that. Okay. Now, on to the story. Please enjoy.

Chapter Two: Human Nature

There hadn't been any funny nightmares after that, but Tsuna didn't feel like he was sleeping any better. What could he do? That was quite a loaded question. After all, Mukuro was right to think it should be impossible as long as he was still just "No-Good Tsuna" and not "the Tenth Boss of Vongola: Sawada Tsunayoshi". A Junior High student couldn't pull those kinds of strings and either way he thought about it, what he wanted to do was illegal.

Law said that Rokudo Mukuro was one of the most vicious, notorious criminals of all. Combined with that and his intense cunning skills, there was no place for him other than the lowest depths of prison, where he couldn't hope of trying to escape again.

And from what he learned, they were right up to a certain point. Rokudo Mukuro had killed a horrendous amount of people and he was crafty, conniving and ambitious enough to do it again, at this point. In the middle, however, there seemed to be a factor that Tsuna considered to be of the utmost importance – one that seemed to go completely unnoticed by the law.

Mukuro was, along with a number of others, it seemed, used as test subjects for horrible, excruciating experiments by his own family. From what Ken told him, this had gone on for a long time for them and it had probably happened before them too. Their own family had done this to them. And they would have suffered far longer if Mukuro hadn't done what he did to open up the chance for them to escape.

There were so may who died there, though Tsuna couldn't help but wonder if that wasn't th price they should pay for their sins. What did people like that consider human life as? In his mind, Tsuna couldn't help but think they were the most despicable of all. Did Mukuro's punishment really take all of that into consideration? Tsuna strongly doubted it.

It's human nature to ask for compensation. That's why the law was made to punish those who had wronged society with a sentence reflecting the crime. While the system sounds like it should run flawlessly, Tsuna couldn't help but think of all the things that couldn't be measured in each case, when taking a crime and it's worthy punishment into consideration. It was an ideal solution, but one that would only work in an ideal world.

That kind of punishment, Tsuna was sure, was not fit to use on anyone.

He recalled the dream. He could only guess where he was going without any lights and he could only figure out where he was going based on the feeling of the water's bubbling movements without any sounds to follow. The idea of such a place wasn't only to lock a person up, but to rob them of their senses completely. Not only that, but staying there long enough without hope would be enough to rob any normal person of their will to live.

Walking through the park, Tsuna realized how lost in his thoughts he had become and noticed that he was pretty hungry. He walked in to one of the small park-side cafes and decided to get something to eat. Standing in the short line to be assigned to a table, Tsuna heard the little girl in front of him, holding her mom's hand, singing a strange pop-rock song.

_...And I looked into your eyes and I saw – my reflection – all the lies..._

_Are you a god of the concrete skies?_

_Can you see the gloom invading my life?_

_Is there something I can do?_

_You'll tell me, won't you?_

_Because you can save me, you can save me_

_I can see it, you could save me if you'd take me_

_You're looking for something, something_

_And I think it's something I can give_

_The way you're looking at me tells me I can_

It was disturbing in a way. Tsuna mentally told himself to look up the song when he got home. It was kind of catchy. "Next, sir... Your table will be this way." The waiter man said politely, giving Tsuna a small two person table against the far left wall, in the back. "Are you ready to order something to drink now?" the man asked, pulling out his tablet.

Tsuna shook his head nervously. "Uhm, no. Can I have a few minutes?" To be honest, the only reason he came here was because it was the closest to where he was when his hunger struck. He had never been here before, and he couldn't say it was the kind of place he might have ever considered going before. All of the decorations were suave and colorful. It was probably going to be expensive, Tsuna said, sighing. The menu was professional, but designed probably to look appealing to teenagers and young adults.

He was about to start decoding the fancy, suave menu when he heard footsteps approaching his table. But instead of the waiter like he had expected, Chrome came running up to his table with a smile on her face. "Boss! The waiter said it would be okay to join you. Is that alright with you?"

"Sure!" Tsuna said, smiling brightly. He had started thinking that it was weird how no one had randomly showed up yet like they usually did. And it was better than sitting alone in silence. "How did you know I was here? And... have you been here before?"

Chrome laughed, her face still glowing cheerfully – more so than usual, too. "No. I know it might sound weird but, as I was walking past this place... I saw you coming in here. Not as you were walking in, but I kind of saw what you did in my head. So I asked the waiter if someone like you was here and he pointed you out." She said. 'That's not normal at all!' Tsuna thought in all honesty. 'Not that I'm not used to things that aren't normal. I think I'm more used to things NOT making sense now.' He grimaced.

"You look... really happy today, Chrome. Did something good happen?"

The purple haired girl giggled. "I can't really say that. There isn't any reason for me to feel especially happy, but when I woke up this morning, I was just... extremely happy. I was a little startled myself. But I think... I think it's Mukuro-sama... I think he's the one who's really happy today."

Tsuna blinked. "Mukuro? What for?" That was a shocker. Hearing that Mukuro was elated was almost a little frightening, considering his life goals at the time.

"I tried to ask him, because I was curious too. We had an interesting conversation. Do you want to hear about it?" Tsuna just nodded anxiously. Part of him was really happy to hear that Mukuro seemed happy. The other part was still slightly wary. But if Chrome was still this happy after talking with him about it, he doubted it could be anything too bad. That was the impression he had of Chrome anyway.

_'Mukuro-sama? Did something happen? You seem really happy today.'_

_'Kufufu. Tell me, Chrome. What do you think of our sins as humans? What do you think of human nature?'_

_'Human... nature...' She pondered it. 'Right now it seems like human nature is to hurt people and do only what benefits us and our organizations the most. That's a sin too, isn't it?'_

_Mukuro chuckled. 'It sounds like it, isn't it. The Original Sin happened because of human nature. Things like curiosity and greed are part of human nature.'_

_'Then... doesn't that almost make it sound like human nature is the worst sin, if it can classify other groups of sins?'_

_'Most definitely. I was just thinking about that this morning... thinking about the disgusting humans that I hate the most and how they were so ruled by those sins. Then I thought I should add hypocrisy to the list of my own sins.'_

_'There's a big difference!' Chrome argued, not willing to put Mukuro on the same level as those people. 'Because it's unavoidable, we all have to live with some sins, but... there has to be a point were some human nature can't be accepted and cannot be forgiven.'_

_Mukuro smiled. 'Yes, I suppose that must be true. And I was wondering why I haven't crossed that line yet. Most people would say I have. To hear one person say that I have not... I was just thinking how nice it is to know one of the most innocent humans of all.' He laughed genuinely. And Chrome couldn't forget the way he smiled. It was so different – so wonderful. She couldn't help smiling herself._

"He was talking about you." Chrome said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "So, thank you Boss. For being the one person so willing to see past Mukuro-sama's sins and try looking at the whole picture."

Tsuna smiled weakly. 'Reborn says don't, but Chrome says do. I guess it doesn't matter since I probably wouldn't have been able to listen to Reborn anyway, but it's kind of nice to know that Mukuro appreciates it. Chrome too. "Ah, it's just who I am." he said, scratching the back of his neck and laughing nervously. It felt really nice.


	3. Chapter 3: Greed

- Immoral -

by the Symphonic Mess "Vi"

Disclaimer: My first foray into the Reborn! fandom, and I decide to pick such a dynamic relationship. Oh my. Anyway, I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn!, it's characters or anything like that. I don't profit off of it. Reviews are all appreciated, so please take a moment afterwards if you have it. I'd much appreciate it, especially since I'm really actually quite nervous about how this story will turn out quality wise on my part.

Note: Also, don't ask for things... muses will eat your ability to write if you try to make them work overtime.

Chapter Three: Greed

'Don't ask for things all the time. If you want it, work for it yourself. Or else you won't get anything. Selfish people don't deserve anything.' That's something Tsuna remembered hearing a number of times before. Not like he had to worry about that. Tsuna was all to familiar with his place in the world. He wasn't called 'No Good Tsuna' for nothing. He was given that nickname because everything he tried, ended up in failure.

But he never asked to be any better than what he was. Yet Tsuna didn't try very hard to make himself better anyway. However, since learning what he was supposed to become, like it or not, he realized that there would be times now and in the future that as a mafia boss, he would have to ask for things of himself. Just being 'No Good Tsuna' wasn't going to be enough when you were fighting for your life as a leader of the mafia, and it wouldn't be good enough to protect his family either.

For the second time that day, he thought back to his strange conversation with Chrome last week. Sure he often expected her to say those kinds of things, but he had never really spent a long period of time with the girl before. Until then, he had no idea of how forward she could be. Things like outbursts, hugs and kisses that he remembered experiencing in the past were awkward, but easily put off when he could focus on something else.

It was an hour and a half until he could finally walk away from her this time. Chrome had started off wild as she usually did, but then she became interested in asking him questions about what he saw and what he knew about the relationship between her and the other three that remained by her side. At first it felt like he was reciting facts, and he was, recalling the things that Mukuro's "friends" had told him as they defended Mukuro at the end of their fight.

Then it came to the part where he had to describe what he saw: things like the visions he got from Mukuro and the nightmare. Even though he had a feeling that she was well aware of where Mukuro was and his bad situation, for some reason these words were harder to pull out. Sometimes he couldn't help but feel responsible for causing that torture, and blamed himself for not trying harder to save him then.

Because to save him now would be a lot more difficult.

When Chrome heard Tsuna say that, she brightened up considerably and laughed. "If you never ask for anything Boss, people won't give you anything. People are greedy and they want to keep what they have as long as they can. But in these situations, when people ask for them, you might be able to convince them to let go of it. Otherwise, they'll never feel any need or desire to give or show you anything at all. And you'll be left alone."

He couldn't help but think about it. All his life he heard people saying that you shouldn't ask for things. Then, suddenly, Chrome came out with something like that? It was so different. It was so... appropriate.

Wasn't that what a family in the mafia was about? Nobody can do it all, so people like this are the ones you find that you want to keep close; people you trust will help you if you need it. It's not greedy if you take and give at the same time. That's cooperation. That's right, he told himself. There really isn't any way that a person could successfully go through life without asking for things a couple hundred times. They may be small or they may be large, but if you open yourself up to people who are asking things of you too, and keep it between people you care about, it isn't greed.

That's why, before they parted, he thought to ask her one thing. "What do you want, Chrome?" She showed a few slight signs of shock that quickly disappeared behind her cute smile. For all she said about giving and taking, he had never once heard Chrome ask for anything. Instead, he watched her go to hellish ends again and again to do these kinds of things for others without a sign of ever asking something in return.

"My life right now is an act of kindness. For the sake of Mukuro-sama's giving me the one thing I needed the most at a time when I didn't even have the will of my own mind to ask for it... I am still working hard to pay it back to all of you in return as your Guardian, Boss."

Tsuna had thought about that a lot the past couple of days. He still couldn't believe the seriously happy tone she took on when she said that. Her whole life was a debt she wanted to repay just because she could? If it was Chrome, then that didn't sound too strange at all. But it still didn't seem fair. She'd always be working to pay it off, and she'd never be able to ask for anything again as long as she followed those beliefs.

Luckily she was with people who would do what she absolutely needed them to anyway, but still...

There had to be something that could be done for her. So he decided that he should do what any good Boss should do. He would take half of the burden from her. Chrome could continue to do whatever she must to repay that debt to Mukuro. And the other part of it, Tsuna would take on. That way, no one was being greedy: they were all working together.

So when he saw her on the next day, even though it was craziness as usual and he didn't really have time to be ignoring the problems at hand, he stopped and looked at her seriously. "Chrome, it's okay. I'll bear part of the weight of your debt to Mukuro. After all, I benefit from it too, having you as my Guardian, so it is only fair. No matter what happens, someday I will get him out of that horrible place and prove that it will never be a proper way of punishment."

Chrome smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "I knew you would understand, Boss."

And it almost sounded like she planned the whole thing out before-hand. Considering it, Tsuna realized that it was more likely the work of Mukuro's tricky planning. And then he took that train of thought and threw it out as completely useless. Because he wanted Mukuro to know. Because when this was all over, he didn't want Mukuro to just leave the Vongola like he always said he would. That, would require a lot more work...

Though, honestly, Tsuna didn't mind. If it was about the Vongola, he had a lot of other people he could turn to for help.

Don't ask for things. Do it yourself. Or else you won't get anything...

Yeah, right. If that was even possible it would have to be someone who was super-human. Not to mention lonely. He wasn't going to listen to things like that anymore. While avarice is one of the seven deadly sins, you have to consider how far you have to go for it to become deadly. But Tsuna knew his family would never go that far. They would help each other and that was enough. And he would do a lot of good things to help them, and be helped in return...

As soon as he could take care of his obligation to Mukuro, first.


End file.
